Explosive-engine.



RALPH THOMYSON AND EMIL KOEB, OF SPRINGFIELD, OHIO.

EXPLOSIVDENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 22, 1910.

Application filed October 16, 1905, Serial No. 282,889, Renewed April 22, 1908. Serial No. 428,637.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, RALPH P. THOMPSON and Emu Konn, citizens of the United States, residing at Springfield, in the county of Clark and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements 111 Explosive-Engines, of which the followlng is a specification, rcfcrcncebeiug had therein to the accompanying drawmgs.

This invention relates to explosive engines, and more particularly to that class of engines known as two cycle cuglnes, employing an air pump to positlvely supply an to the power cylinder for the double purpose of sweeping or clcaringput therefrom the products of the preceding explosion and supplying the an for the explosive mlxture for the next explosion.

The invention is in the nature of an imrovement upon what is disclosed in United gtates Letters Patent- No. 729,700, granted to us June 2, 1903, and has for its object to improve the construction and operation of the structure in certain respects which will be hereinafter more fully pointed out.

To this end our invention consists in certain novel features which we will now proceed to describe, and will then particularly point out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, F gure 1 is a plan View of an engine embodying our invention in one form; Fig. '2 is a vertical, central longitudinal section through the same, taken on the line a: a; of Fig. l and lookin in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 is a rout elevation of the air pump crliudcr head or diaphragm and its check valves; and Fig. 4 an end elevation of the air pump piston.

In its main structural features. our prescut construction is similar to that set.- forth in our prior Letters Patent hcrciulwforc rcfcrrcd to, and thcr :forc requires no detailed descriptiml. In this construction. I indicates the main power cylinder. having lho fuel inlet 2. through which llu.*mixturc ol gas and air is drawn u mu the outward movement of the pistons, the air inl t purl and exhaust port 4.

5 and 6 indicate the power pistons. llpl'l'llimg in opposite directions in said main cylinder on opposite sides of the central arch T, and connected lo the crank shaft by connecting rods 8, the cross heads living indicated by the numeral El.

10 indicates an air pump cylinder, which is prefcrablv formed in one piece with the main cylinder 1, of which it forms an extension. and 11 indicates the air pump piston, which is preferably formed in one P1668 with the power piston (3, in unison with which it moves. The air pump cylinder is of greater diameter than the power cylinder, the pistons being corrcsponding-l proportioned, and said cylinders have formed in their sides openings 1:2, shown in dotted lines in Fig. :2. These openings or! in the form of slots for the passage of the cross head 9 through the side walls of the power cylinder 1, while the sides of the air pump cylinder 10 are cut away so as to accommodate the ends of the connecting rods 8 which are connected to the ends of the cross head. Itwill be noted that these connecting rods are deflected inward toward each other, so that the extreme length of the cross head, and the distance between the outer sides of the ends of the connecting rods connected thereto, is less than the internal diameter of the air pump cylinder, into which iaiter the cross head and connecting rods enter as they follow the air pump piston. The cut-away portions of the air Jump cylinder accommodate the vertical vibrations or oscillations of the connecting rods, but these cut-away portions do not extend sufficiently far along the side walls of said cylinder to permit the air puln 1 piston to pass clear of the same. It will t iorefm-e he soon that no air enters the (ylll'ldtll' 10 through the openings in the side wall ihorco'f, the body of the piston being of suflicicut length to keep the openings l2 closed when the piston is at the limit of its stroke at that cud of tho cylinder.

13 indicates the air pump cylinder head, or a diaphragm fanning the outer end of the air pump cylinder chamber Li, the outer end of said cylinder being closed by a. on .1 15, which constitutes an outer or false cylinder head and forms a cl'uuul'mll; helm-011 it and [he cylinder head u'opcr or diaphragm 13.

As already stale. the air pump piston I1 is of greater diameter lhun the power pislou (i with which il moves, and tlu uuuular body portion of said air pump piston which exlemls radially beyond the power piston is provided with a pluralily of air iulcl uponmgs 16". by means of which cmumuuicaliou is csluhlislwd lwlwecu thul part of lhe air pum) cylinder in which the opvuinns ii! are owned, and which lies on one side of ihe piston 11, and Hunt purl of the air pump cylinder lying on the other side of said piston, and in which the ur supply is cone pressed during the workmg stroke of soul iston. These air inlet open ngs 16 are controlled by [lap valves 17, which are closed during the outward or working stroke of the piston, and which open during the moving of the iston in the opposite direction.

The cylinder head or diaphragm 13 15 provided with one or more openln s 18, by which communication may be estab lshed between the chambers 14 and 16, said openings being controlled by flap valves 19, which constitute check valves opening during the outward or working stroke of the piston to permit the air to pass from the pump cylm der to the power cylinder, but clos ng automatically to prevent passage of ear n the opposite direction. The chamber 16 1s connected through a conduit or p pe 20 with a receiver 21, this latter being in turn connected by a pipe or conduit 22 with the air inlet port 3.

The general operation of the engine is as set forth in our prior Letters Patent hereinbefore referred to. During the outward stroke of the power pistons after the lgmtion of the charge, the air in the pump.

cylinder 10 is compressed in front of the piston 11, and passes through the openings 18 into the chamber 16, the check valves 19 opening for said purpose, said 8.11 passing out of the chamber 16 through the pipe 20 into the receiver 21, and from this latter, through pipe 22 and through the 1nlet port 3, into the power cylinder, through which it sweeps so as to carry the products of the explosion through the exhaust port 4, at the same time supplying to the said cylinder the necessary amount of air for the next explosion. At the beginning of the next or inward stroke of the pistons, the check valves 1.9 instantly close, and prevent any possible reflux of air back from the power cylinder through the port 3 and the connections between said port and the air pump cylinder. Bfy reason of this construction, the delivery o the predetermined amount of air to the main cylinder is assured, and all connection between the pump cylinder and main cylin der is cut oil except when the pressure in the pump cylinder exceeds that in the mam cylinder. As soon as the air pump piston 11 begins its inward movement, the valves 17 open and admit air to the s ace between said piston and the cylinder lead or diaphragm 13, thus reventing the establishment of a vacuum etwecn the two.

It will be observed that the air inlet valves are so located that the are entirely inclosed and protected, and t at the air supply is drawn through the practically open on of the air pump cylinder and through the valved iiplgs in the air pump pistgn. The chec v ves lfiare elm properly mclosed and protected, being readily accessible, 1however, upon the removal of the ca 5.

lo facilitate access to the interior of the parts of the air pump, we have devised the construction shown, 1n which the outer end of the cylinder 10 is of larger diameter, as indicated at 23, thus forming a seat or shoulder 24, against which the cylinder head or diaphragm 13 rests. The cap 1:) is provided with an annular flange 25, which fits within the enlarged portion 23 of the cylinder and bears against the head of diaphragm 13 to hold it in its scat. After the cap-has been removed, the diaphragm or inner head may be also readily removed to give access to the interior of the cylinder and to the piston therein.

It will be noted that we have done away with the fprovision made in our prior patent hereinbe ore referred to for the escape of air from in front of the air pump piston during the early part of its compression stroke, and have provided a receiver between the air pump cylinder and air inlet port of the power cylinder, to provide for the storage of air under pressure, the compression of which begins as soon as the com ression stroke begins, until the opening 0 the air inlet port permits the air time stored to enter and sweep through the power cylinder in the manner already described, while the check valve between said receiver and the air pump cylinder prevents any reflux or back pressure from the receiver to the cylinder. It will further be noted that b interposing the receiver into the conduit tween the air comprcssor and the power cylinder and arrang- 1n the same near the air inlet to the power cylinder, the air is stored close to the point of discharge into that cylinder and W111 be discharged into the power c linder during the short interval that the inlet is uncovcred; and that, by reason of this construction, we secure a quicker and more complete discharge of the air into the power cylinder than is the case where the compressor is conuected to the power cylinder by the conduitonly and the air is, for the most part, stored in the compression cylinder.

'0 do not wish to be understood as limiting ourselves to the precise details of construction hcrcinbcfore described and shown in the accompan 'ing drawings, as it is obvious that these r etails may be varied without. departing from the principle of our inmotion.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

1. In an explosive engine of the character described. the combination. with a main evlunder having inlet and exhaust ports, am a power )lSlfilI, of an air pump comprising a cylin er of greater diameter than the main cylinder, arrai'iged at one mid of said nniin ttylil'ltik'fl and eonnectml with the inlet port tlurreof, a piston traveling in said air pump cylind...' and connected with the power Iriston to move in unison therewith, the power piston being provided with a cross head of less length than the diameter of said air pump uylinder, a crank shaft, and means for umnecting said crank shaft to said cross head, the sides of said cylinders being slot-ted or cut away to receive said cross head and said connecting means.

2. In an explosive engine of the character described, the combination, with a main cylinder having inlet, and exhaust. ports and a power piston, of an air pump com prising a cylinder of greater diameter than the main cylinder, arranged at one end of said main cylinder and connected with the inlet port thereof, the sides of said qylinders being sliiitt-ed. or out. away as dost-ritual. a piston traveling in said air pump trylilltltil' and cow minted with the power [)iHlUll to move in unison therewith, the power )iHlUH hein provided with a Lross head 0 less lengl 1 than the diameter of the air pump cylinder and adapted to enter said slotted or out away portion of said cylinders, a crank shaft, and connecting rods haringtl'ieir ends deflected toward each other and connected with the ends of the cross head so as to enter the air pump cylinder along with said cross head, substantially as descrilmd.

In testimony whereof, we aitix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

RALPH P. THOMPSON. EMIL KOEB. \Vitnesses Invmn MILLER, T. J. McComuc-it. 

